Imani Perry
Author and professor of African-American studies who provides historical analysis and commentary on the Blue Back Speller and its role in Black intellectual history.
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Jun 19, 2026 • 46min
100 Objects #5: Blue Back Speller
Imani Perry, author and professor of African-American studies, traces the Webster Blue Back Speller through Black intellectual history. She discusses its secret use for literacy under slavery. She connects the speller to Booker T. Washington’s vocational vision and W.E.B. Du Bois’s call for classical education. She explores how a simple book became a tool for citizenship and liberation.
